Maintain strict hardware separation between work and personal data.

While many corporations are diligent about keeping work data out of your personal devices for security reasons, the reverse is often entirely your responsibility.

When things go wrong, or your company gets into legal trouble, you want to be sure you’re not exposed to liability or exploitation. One way to help you get there is to make sure your personal data never gets onto work hardware.

Remember that your employer has essentially unlimited freedom to retain a copy of all data on their devices. And in some cases, like litigation, they are obligated to retain data for legal discovery. Are you comfortable having your personal chats and browsing history reviewed by lawyers involved in a lawsuit? If not, keep that data off your work device.

Yes, that means you may need to carry a personal phone in addition to a work phone, or buy a laptop for personal use rather than browsing on the “free” one from work. But employment is temporary and will eventually come to an end, and possibly not in an orderly or amicable manner. Protect yourself.

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